Environmental charity Groundwork is marking the end of its Young People Friendly Neighbourhoods (YPFN) programme at an event in Birmingham on 24 April.
With funding from the Big Lottery Fund, 1,500 young people have been working to make their communities better places to live, by assessing areas of concern and taking action to improve them social and environmentally.
Working with local authorities, housing associations and police, the teams of young people arranged activities including community clean-up days and gardening projects.
Jane Marsden, 16, who was part of the Rossendale YPFN team, said: "I got involved because I was sick and tired of people my age being blamed for all the noise, litter and general nuisance.
"I want to prove to people that just because we're teenagers doesn't mean we're a no good waste of space.
"Now that we have shown we can make a difference in our community, and that we aren't just a bunch of kids hanging around with nothing to do, people listen to us more and actually take our views and opinions into consideration."
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